The Extreme E title fight will go down to the wire after X44 Vida Carbon Racing took their first win of Season 2, meaning Lewis Hamiltons team jump up to second in the championship. They are now just 17 points behind Rosberg X Racing, who suffered a technical issue which stopped them taking the start in the Final.
The Antofagasta Minerals Copper X Prix was punctuated by penalties, as the short and challenging course pushed the drivers to run into waypoint flags, or sometimes go around them altogether. The trend continued through to the Final, as NEOM McLaren Extreme E crossed the line first, but received a penalty for knocking down a flag to drop them off the podium. X44 themselves narrowly avoided a penalty after nudging a flag, as the drivers pushed the limits in the Final race.
In Qualifying 1, RXR re-affirmed themselves as the frontrunners, setting a time over five and half seconds quicker than their nearest challengers X44. Catie Munnings was losing power steering in Q1 and lost significant time as she wrestled her 1.7-tonne Genesys Andretti United car around the jumps and banking of the circuit.
Teams receive a one-second penalty for every km/h over the Switch Zone speed limit, and a 46-second penalty only added insult to injury for Andretti. The American outfit were spared a last-placed finish as JBXE suffered a driveshaft issue, which meant they limped home well over a minute off the pace.
The weekends racing began with XITE Energy Racing, RXR and Veloce Racing all running wide of Gate 8 as they took the steep left-hander, each earning themselves a time penalty. After NO.99 GMC HUMMER EV Chip Ganassi suffered a puncture, a clear path emerged for Andretti to drive through to win Heat 1.
Heat 2, although not without incident, was slightly calmer. Sbastien Loeb went for a move up the inside of Carlos Sainz, but clipped a flag as he was pinched on the apex. Acciona Sainz were promoted to P1 after a penalty for X44, who only held onto second place by three hundredths of a second.
The course had been dampened by natural seawater running into the areas mines, leaving the odd puddle on track ahead of the first Semi-Final. As Acciona Sainz and RXR splashed their way through the first corner, Catie Munnings was completely blinded and was forced to come to a standstill before she could get the wipers on and continue.
Instead, RXR came through to win the Semi-final ahead of Laia Sanz, but Timmy Hansen came roaring back on the final lap, closing nearly ten seconds during his stint. He finished narrowly third, shooting past Sanz in mid-air after the finish jump, as Andrettis weekend came to an end in cruel fashion.
In Semi-final 2, X44 took off for the win, while Chip Ganassis Kyle Leduc hunted down Nasser Al-Attiyah after the Switch. The Americans pursuit, although dramatic and aggressive, would prove unsuccessful and their weekend would end there or so they thought
In the Crazy Final, Timmy Hansen made a spectacular move at the end of the first lap, passing Emma Gilmour on the inside going over the final jump. After the Switch, Hedda Hoss and Tanner Foust came together after the jump, sending Hoss spinning round and Foust spearing off, missing the next waypoint.
The contact meant McLaren held onto the lead, and also took the Continental Traction Challenge, setting the fastest time on that specific section of track over the weekend, granting them an additional five Championship points.
In the final, the drama got underway even before the green start light turned on. A vacant spot stood out on the start line and the cameras cut to Kristoffersson getting out of the RXR car that had looked set to be crowned two-time Champion. Chip Ganassi, who thought they were out in Semi-final 2, were thrown a lifeline and took RXRs spot, suddenly having the chance to win.
It was almost five-wide at the first turn, and X44 muscled their way out of the melee first. Chip Ganassi made contact with ABT CUPRA, and Ganassis Leduc managed to gather a huge slide to stay in the running, but took out the waypoint flag. Foust, who had looked quick all weekend, closed the gap to Loeb and drifted up his inside, nudging the X44 with the rear bumper of his McLaren.
Cristina Gutirrez came flying out of the Switch, deploying her Enowa Hyperdrive to shoot into the lead, but Gilmour would respond and re-pass for the lead. It would become a lead she hold to the end, but lose after the fact thanks to a penalty for clipping a flag.
Instead X44 came through to take victory after the penalties were applied, with Chip Ganassi also dropping back and ABT CUPRA making the podium. That result will give Extreme E fans what they want: a final round showdown in Uruguay in November.
RXR remain favourites with their 17-point advantage, and look quick everywhere they go. However, as this round proved, anything can happen in Extreme E, and nothing is guaranteed. One thing is certain though: if anyone is to topple RXR next time out, they can't afford to make any mistakes.
